MESOP : INTENDET CONFUSION – NOTHING – 50 tons or 120 tons ? – Turkey accuses US, Russia of supporting PYD, ignoring its PKK link

October 17, 2015, Saturday/ 17:00:00/ DENİZ ARSLAN / ANKARA – While the power balance in the Middle East becomes much more complicated after Russia’s intervention in the Syrian conflict, it’s increasingly difficult to pinpoint Turkey’s allies or foes, particularly after Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet Davutoğlu’s recent outburst at Russia and the US over their support for the Syrian Kurdish Democratic Union Party (PYD).

Turkey considers the PYD a terrorist organization which has links to the terrorist Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK). The PYD recently emerged as a leading force in the fight against the terrorist Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) and US officials insist that, under US law, the PYD is not considered a terrorist organization.

Speaking to a group of journalists in Ankara on Wednesday, Prime Minister Davutoğlu, widely viewed as the architect of Turkey’s inflexible Syrian policy and leaving little room for adjustments, expressed his dismay with the US in particular.

He pointed out that while Turkey and other allies have sided with the US in the fight against terrorist al-Qaeda and all of its affiliates, Turkey expects the same from the Americans when it comes to the PKK and its affiliates. Davutoğlu stressed that any weapons transfer to groups which are affiliated with the PKK is unacceptable, referring to news reports which suggested that the US airdropped weapons to PYD forces in northern Syria. Davutoğlu said Turkey cannot allow the weaponry to enter Turkey and be used by the PKK, adding that Turkey will launch military operations against the PYD to prevent any weapons transfer from the PYD to the PKK. Davutoğlu also told journalists that the Foreign Ministry summoned US Ambassador to Turkey John Bass in order to express concerns that the US was providing weapons to Kurdish forces in Syria. He mentioned that the ministry also summoned the Russian ambassador to Turkey, Andrey Karlov. The Washington Post reported on Thursday that Turkey summoning both the US and Russian ambassadors over concerns of both countries helping Kurds could suggest that there is at least one area — supporting Kurdish militias — where American and Russian interests inside Syria may converge. “Or it could be developing into another point of contention, as the two sides compete for the Kurds’ affections,” the report said.

The US military said on Monday that cargo planes had dropped small arms ammunition to “Arab groups” fighting against ISIL in northern Syria. But The Associated Press reported on Wednesday that a local Kurdish official named Mustafa Bali in the northern Syrian city of Kobani said that the US had provided 120 tons of weaponry and ammunition to the main Kurdish militia fighting ISIL in that area. Bali said he did not know whether the supplies had been provided by air or over land. The US military did not confirm the delivery of weapons or ammunition to Syrian Kurds last week.

“No one can guarantee that arms given to the PYD today won’t fall into the hands of the PKK tomorrow and be used against Turkey,” Davutoğlu was quoted as saying in Turkish newspapers on Wednesday. “Turkey cannot accept any kind of cooperation with terrorist organizations that have declared war against Turkey,” he added.Speaking to the press during a joint press conference with Saudi Arabian Foreign Minister Adel bin Ahmed Al-Jubeir on Thursday, Turkish Foreign Minister Feridun Sinirlioğlu also warned the PYD that Ankara would not hesitate to respond to any threatening moves against Turkey.

US President Barack Obama and Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan had a phone conversation on Thursday. According to a White House statement, the two spoke about “deepening cooperation in the fight against ISIL.” Obama also condemned the Oct. 10 terrorist attack in Ankara which killed 99 people. The US president offered his condolences as well as US solidarity in the face of the security threats Turkey faces.

“The two leaders reaffirmed their shared goal of stepping up military pressure on ISIL and strengthening moderate opposition elements in Syria to create conditions for a negotiated solution to the conflict, including a political transition,” the White House said. The statement also indicated that the two leaders also agreed on the urgent need for an end to PKK attacks in Turkey.

The pro-government daily Sabah reported on Friday that Ankara warned the Obama administration after it found out recently that the US weaponry which was allegedly transferred to the PYD ended up in the PKK’s main safe haven in the Kandil Mountains. According to Sabah, Turkish F-17 jets bombed these areas and destroyed the weapons. The daily said Bass was summoned to the Turkish Foreign Ministry after this incident for an explanation.

According to a Bloomberg news agency report on Thursday, American and Kurdish officials and Syrian Arab opposition leaders stated that ammunition said to have been for the Syrian Arab Coalition, a newly announced group of Sunni Arab brigades in northeast Syria, had largely ended up arming the PYD and its associated military forces, known as the People’s Protection Units (YPG). This move concerns Turkey as weapon aid will help Kurds to cement their control of Kurdish territory in northern Syria.

One senior administration official who works on the issue told us that the White House knew that the coalition was likely to pass most, if not all, of the weapons to the Kurds, Bloomberg reported. The official, who called the Syrian Arab Coalition a “ploy” to arm the Kurds, said the White House knew they would receive the shipments because they controlled the area where the weapons were dropped, the report added.The US and Turkey had announced in July that they had agreed to support Syria’s moderate opposition forces by creating an ISIL-free buffer zone along the Turkish border. But Russia has flexed its muscles and effectively killed those plans. While Russia is siding with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad’s regime and bombing the Syrian opposition forces, the US announced it has scrapped its train-and-equip program for the moderate Syrian opposition and said it would directly arm groups fighting against ISIL. In July, US Defense Secretary Ash Carter had said the YPG is a “capable” and “effective” force against ISIL. http://www.todayszaman.com/diplomacy_turkey-accuses-us-russia-of-supporting-pyd-ignoring-its-pkk-link_401694.html